Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler tried to recruit pitcher Cliff Lee on Tuesday, and he wasn’t the only one from the organization to do so.

Kinsler told ESPN Radio in Dallas he exchanged texts with Lee, and the free-agent lefty, expected to sign with either the Yankees or Rangers, said Texas reps were back at his house in Arkansas trying to persuade him to return to the team.

“Basically, I said, ‘What’s going on in Arkansas?’ ” Kinsler told the radio station. “He said, ‘The Rangers are down here again. I was like, ‘Well, just sign whatever they give you.’ He said, ‘Let’s see what happens. We have to wait it out.’ ”

The Yankees have emerged as favorites because most believe the Rangers are unwilling to offer the 32-year-old a similar amount of money. The Post reported yesterday the Rangers would be willing to match the five years the Yankees reportedly plan to offer.

Rangers GM Jon Daniels told ESPN.com he and team president Nolan Ryan met with Lee this week but would not say if a contract offer was made.

“It’s a process with only one point that’s really worthy of talking about, and that’s when there’s a decision made,” Daniels told the website. “No sense in trying to dissect and analyze everything else, but I realize that’s what goes on this time of year.”

Lee’s agent, Darek Braunecker, is expected to start getting into the negotiating process next week at the Winter Meetings in Orlando.

Lee would not commit to a Rangers return despite the fact he helped lead them to the World Series last year, eliminating the Yankees in the ALCS.

“I said, ‘Remember, I like being your teammate,’ ” Kinsler said. “And he said, ‘I do, too, but we have to wait it out.’ I said, ‘Just sign it.’ And then he sent me a picture of a deer [that a friend had bagged on his property].”